Essential Random Gym Thoughts Revisited...

[dtownreppin214]

Former and haven't experienced any shoulder problems. That said, flat bench is my weakest and least favorite lift of all the major lifts so as I keep moving up I might be forced to switch. Just curious how tall are you and do you have long arms?

i'm 6'2, my arms are pretty long.

My opinion is pinning the shoulders together (retraction) is fine for powerlifters who are trying to move as much weight as possible in the shortest distance for a single rep. But if you're a regular lifter doing 6+ reps for hypertrophy, then keeping the shoulders pinned while moving weight upward is a completely unnatural position for your body and could lead to issues. Just sitting at my desk as I'm typing this, I'm trying to mimic pressing my arms forward while keeping my scapula retracted/pinned, and it just feels totally unnatural and weird.

But this is a change I just recently adopted. I did the same as you for the longest, until I got above 245 lbs and started having issues.

N1 guys did a good breakdown on this topic

 

[xXMASHERXx]

Snip

I'm 6'0 with long arms as well, though I lift more like a powerlifter than a bodybuilder so my focus is like you stated. I'll check out the videos you posted when I have a chance.

 

[phcitywarrior]

What's funny, I hear more stories of people getting hurt from benching (shoulders) than any other lift.

Kinda what happened to me and I've now switched to DB press. Issue is my current gym doesn't go higher than 100lbs on the DBs.

 

[xXMASHERXx]

Kinda what happened to me and I've now switched to DB press. Issue is my current gym doesn't go higher than 100lbs on the DBs.

I think it's because it's the most popular lift and people don't realize how much technique is involved in doing it correctly. Also having longer arms makes it harder for you to find comfortable positioning imo.